Do care workers follow a code of conduct? And, if so, what is the code of conduct for healthcare support workers?
Carers and support workers play a vital role in caring for some of the most vulnerable people in society. As a care worker, you may need to support people who can’t advocate for themselves, so your work and behaviour needs to be held to a very high standard.
The Skills for Care Code of Conduct for Healthcare Support Workers and Adult Social Care Workers in England explains the standards that should be expected in safe and compassionate care.
In this article, I’ll explain what the code of conduct is, who it applies to, and what it includes.
Table of Contents
What is the code of conduct for healthcare support workers?
The code of conduct sets out the behaviour we should expect from health and social care workers in England.
Organisations don’t have to follow the code of conduct, but it’s a good sign of best practice. It’s often used alongside the Care Certificate, which sets out what care workers should know and be able to do.
Who does the code of conduct cover?
The code of conduct explains the standards that are expected of all healthcare support workers and adult social care workers in England.
It covers roles such as:
- Healthcare support workers who work directly with patients (in healthcare settings) or service users (in social care settings)
- Independent care workers, such as personal assistants
- Care workers providing support in residential, day support, supported living, or home care settings
The seven standards of the code of conduct
There are seven key standards in the code of conduct for support workers. They’re linked to concepts from the Care Certificate, and describe some of the commitments that carers should make to their clients.
The standards are:
- Accountability
- Promoting dignity and wellbeing
- Collaboration
- Communication
- Confidentiality
- Continuous professional development
- Upholding equality, diversity and inclusion
Whether a carer works in a client’s own home, a residential setting, or a day centre, they should follow these standards.
Accountability
Care workers should take responsibility for everything they do. This includes recognising their own limits, seeking guidance where necessary, and admitting to mistakes immediately. When carers make mistakes, they should learn from them.
Promoting dignity and wellbeing
Service users deserve to be treated with compassion and respect, and to have their dignity and rights upheld. Care workers must make sure that their clients feel that their dignity is respected, and that their wellbeing is at the heart of all the services provided.
Carers must understand that clients have the right to refuse services, and balance this fact with needing to promote their wellbeing.
Collaboration
Teamwork is an important part of providing care. Carers should work with colleagues and others, where appropriate, to deliver high-quality and compassionate care. Depending on the circumstances, this may include working with family members and other health and social care professionals, such as GPs.
Communication
Care workers need to communicate clearly with clients, colleagues, family members, and other professionals. Clear communication helps everyone involved in care feel confident about procedures and tasks, and encourages service users to speak up if they have concerns. Constant communication means that clients will feel like an active participant in their care.
Communication might involve spoken or non-verbal communication during care tasks or handovers and written communication in notes or letters. Care management software can help here, allowing carers and family members to communicate quickly and easily about a service user.
Confidentiality
Carers will come to know some very personal and private information about their clients. It’s important that they keep these details confidential, only sharing sensitive information when it’s necessary to do so. Care workers may need training in data protection regulations, and supervisors and managers should ensure that care plans are kept securely. Using digital care planning software can help to keep care plans confidential – there’s no risk of unauthorised people finding paper care plans lying around.
Continuous professional development
Care workers should be continually improving their skills. Whether that’s by taking regular training sessions in first aid, moving and handling, or food hygiene, or doing more in-depth courses in supporting people with dementia or other conditions, it’s important to ensure that care skills are always up-to-date. Employers can use employee checklists to keep track of training sessions.
Upholding equality, diversity and inclusion
All service users deserve to be treated well. Care workers must commit to ensuring all of their clients receive the best possible service, regardless of their background, beliefs, gender, sexual orientation, or other characteristics.
Implementing the code of conduct in daily practice
The Skills for Care Code of Conduct for Healthcare Support Workers and Adult Social Care Workers provides a guide on how to provide compassionate and safe care.
As well as asking the question “What is the code of conduct for healthcare support workers?”, we also need to ask how to implement it.
Care management software can help care providers ensure that the code of conduct is being followed. Digital tools can help with incident reporting, communication, and tracking key issues such as medication and staff training.
It won’t always be easy to follow the code of conduct in daily practice. Care workers may need to balance different values, such as a client’s right to refuse medication while still upholding their wellbeing. Supervisors and managers will play a key role in supporting carers through these challenges.
Article by:
Jessica Slattery, Digital Social Care Expert @ PASS
Jess and her team have worked with more than 1,200 social care businesses, providing expert advice on Digital Social Care Record (DSCR) systems, resulting in thousands of hours saved, improved CQC ratings, and better quality of care for the people they care about.
